2 Major Green Bay Geothermal Heating and Cooling Considerations

May 01, 2018

1. Up-Front Costs vs. Payback

No two ways about it: replacing your present HVAC system with a geothermal heating and cooling system is a pricy proposition. Front-end costs here in Green Bay tend to be anywhere from $10,000 to $30,000 – or higher. Lot size, site accessibility, system configuration, ground conditions, and other conditions]17] account for that. So too does the amount of excavation that has to be done and what type of ductwork modifications are necessary. And if you’re building a new home? It’s not as expensive, overall, but it’ll still cost roughly 40 percent more than a standard-issue HVAC system will cost you.

Okay, so much for the bad news. How about some good news? To begin with, various incentives and rebates may be obtainable at the federal, state and local level to help you bear the installation costs. Next, the energy savings you could realize with your new geothermal heating and cooling system will help you begin to recoup your initial investment right away. That means you could recoup your investment in as little as four years. But understand: Local utility rates and the end cost of your installation may prevent full repayment for as long as 15 years. Given that geothermal systems frequently endure for upwards of 30 or 50 years, though, you’ll still be ahead of the game. You merely have to calculate sooner rather than later what your finances can bear … and how patient you are.

Compared to ordinary heating and cooling systems, geothermal heating and cooling could clip as much as 30 to 60 percent off your heating bills. And it could reduce your cooling costs by as much as 20 to 50 percent.

Geothermal systems use renewable energy – heat taken from the ground.

Geothermal heat pumps don’t operate by combustion, so there are no greenhouse gas emissions (carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, etc.) and no fire safety or air quality concerns.

Because no outdoor fans or compressors are necessary, geothermal heating and cooling systems operate much quieter than typical, run-of-the-mill systems.

Since there are few moving parts and geothermal systems are protected from the elements, you’re pretty much guaranteed many decades of low-maintenance, top-performance use. Indoor components may last about 30 years, ground loops, about 50.